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It was another beautiful start to the day as we enjoyed our
morning coffee.We are heading back to
Vancouver Island today...so we will be putting the fifth wheel into storage on the
way to the ferry.Econo Storage in
Langley, where we stored the rig last spring, has a 40` back-in spot
available.We haven`t seen the spot but
we know the facility is secure and when I called them late last week, she felt
that the spot would have plenty of manoeuvring room for us.

I finished packing our suitcase and emptying the fridge,
putting the remaining food in the cooler before starting my regular pack-up of
the inside...Steve was "doing his thing" outside.It was shortly after 10:30 when we pulled out
of the airport campground and after stopping as Fraserway RV to empty our holding
tanks, we were on our way to Langley.

We arrived at Econo Storage after a short half-hour drive
only to find the spot that we had reserved had been given to someone else.I guess the "the new girl" had forgotten to
enter the 'hold` into the computer and consequently, the spot had been rented
out.But thank goodness, they had
another spot available and it turned out to be perfect...a corner spot with
easy access...and she gave us this 45`spot for the same price as the
40`one.

The spot was much easier to get into than the pull-through
spot we had rented last spring...

Once unhitched, Steve secured the cooler on the back of the
truck and we were ready to head to the ferry...

Approach to BC Ferries Tsawwassen Terminal...

We are not sure exactly how long we are going to be back on
the Island for...likely a few weeks as we have a very big and very full house
to clean out and prepare it for the market.Steve`s dad moved into the Independent Living Section of Shoal Centre in
Sidney last Friday...now it`s time to deal with his house.Steve`s brother, Dave, is arriving next week
from Manitoba...good timing, Dave.So
all three siblings (and spouses) have a busy time ahead of them...hopefully we
can get through it all quickly (wishful thinking??)

The original reason for returning to the Island is my
niece`s wedding this Saturday (Steve`s dad`s move just happened to coincide...but
it is good timing).After a lot of
preparation and hard work over the last year, my brother and sister-in-law`s
(Dwight and Helen) backyard has been transformed into the venue of Vanessa and Nathanial`s outdoor
wedding.I am really looking forward to
it!

Friday morning was the opening day of the air show and we figured it
would be the best day to go...and of course, what we don`t see today, we`ll be
able to see Saturday or Sunday because our pass allows us access for all 3
days.We packed the backpack with
binoculars, 6 bottles of frozen water (it`s going to be a hot day, so I don`t
think it will stay frozen for long!) and sunscreen...and, with our chairs and
cameras, we were off to the gate entrance to catch the shuttle.It was 8:45 a.m.

Not too busy yet...

The first thing we did was go set up our chairs along the fence at the
viewing area...with our spot saved, we then headed off to see the ‘heavy
static’ display.

The events start at 11:00 a.m. so after 2 hours of walking on the hot
tarmac, we were ready to sit and watch the show...

The show ended at about 5:30 p.m....time to head back to the trailer.After 9 hours out in the sun, we were hot and
tired...and looking forward to some shade!

Saturday morning I downloaded all of the pictures we took
yesterday...over 300 pictures!We
decided that we would just hang around the trailer today.We still had the ‘light static’ displays to
see but we thought we would do that tomorrow...besides at about 11:00 five
young fellows arrived at a camper van that had parked right beside us on
Thursday night.We hadn’t seen anyone
around the van until this morning...and what shows up? Five “gangsta wannabe’s”
complete with shorts worn halfway down their butts and bodies covered with
tattoos...not to mention the loud foul language that they need to use to
converse with one another.Hmmm....this
is just lovely...

Well, as the afternoon progressed, more and more cars and
people arrived.Their van was parked so
close to our trailer that the awning they set up was just inches from our trailer...and
then they set up a table with Coleman stove right underneath our bedroom
slider!Steve quickly asked them to move
it...no problem.Actually a couple of
the fellows were quite friendly...we charged their cell phones for them and
they were quite cordial. They were all
very impressed with our truck.One of
them admitted that he got out of jail 4 months ago after serving a 7 year
sentence for shoving a gun in a guy’s mouth that had owed him money...hmmm...then
said he had learned his lesson, got off drugs and was trying to turn his life
around. I think he found the wrong
crowd to help him turn his life around! As the afternoon wore on with the booze, pot
and apparently cocaine starting shortly after their arrival, the “group”
mentality started to take over.What got
me were the little kids that they brought with them and the pregnant mom in her
tiny bikini...she even went into the air show dressed that way!

Around 6:00 we went inside to watch the news and get dinner
started...only to find the satellite signal had been lost.Our neighbours had bumped the dish so Steve
had to go outside and we had to re-establish a signal.A little later as we were having dinner, there
was a thump on the side of the trailer...well, I guess a couple of fellows were
having a scuffle and slammed against our slider and the neighbour’s tent.Okay...that’s it...at this point, we have no
idea how many people are there and it is only 7:00, so Steve decided to walk
down and have a chat with security.Well, I guess there had already been a couple of complaints from our
other neighbours and the security fellow happened to be on the phone with
Abbotsford Police dispatch.Apparently
he had been on the phone for 15 minutes and was having difficulty convincing
dispatch to send someone out, so after overhearing Steve’s story he handed the
phone to Steve.That seemed to work
because within minutes 6 cops showed up! I guess the group was told to leave, so one
guy got mouthy and was consequently cuffed and put into the back of the police cruiser.
They were also advised that if they decided to return for some vengeance or
damage anything, that they knew who to look for.

Everyone that thought they were able to drive were given a
breathalyser then allowed to leave. Three cars were left behind which meant
that we would probably have to deal with some of them again. Security assured
us that the gates were going to be locked and patrols would be stepped up.

On Sunday, we were reluctant to see the rest of the static
display until those cars were gone but figured they would probably be sleeping
in. We left at 10:30 and were back just before lunch. They returned for their
cars at 1:15 and apologized for getting all lit up and told us to enjoy the
show...waved and left. No further
issues...whew!

Mount Baker as seen from our campsite...Steve took a lot of pictures and managed to cut them back
considerably but there are still too many to post on the blog...so, just a few
have been posted and if you would like to see all pictures, please go to our
web album.... Abbotsford 50th International Air Show 2012

I was up bright and early this morning...6:30...got the coffee on,
fired up the laptop and resumed my usual morning spot in my recliner.I had two blog posts to finalize and get
published.Steve joined me about 15
minutes later.The sun was shining...the
forecast for the air show weekend was looking spectacular.

Today, however, we had some errands to run...but before that, we were
going out for breakfast (something we haven’t done for ages).We loaded the laundry into the truck along
with an empty propane tank...and headed off to ABC Country Restaurant for
breakfast.

After breakfast, we found a Laundromat and spent the next couple of
hours doing laundry.There happened to
be a Lordco nearby, so Steve had some “alone” time walking the isles and
checking things out.He was actually
after one fuse...of course, they only came in packs of 5...oh well, he’ll find
one somewhere else.

Once the laundry was all done, we stopped to fill the propane tank,
then Safeway and liquor store...and then continued onto Fraserway RV.We wanted to take a look in their parts
department.We wandered around there for
a bit, Steve found a 50 amp circuit breaker he wanted and then we headed home...it was after
2:00 by this time.

Well, it’s a very noisy campground...all of the airplanes were
practicing today!It was
awesome...watching the Snowbirds, CF18s, Spitfires, etc.Steve was out there with his camera...he is
absolutely in his element. I joined him after I put the laundry away and made the bed.We spent the rest of the afternoon watching
the show. Unfortunately, a high cloud covering moved in...hopefully there will be clear blue sky for the air show.

After dinner went thought we should get a little exercise so we put on our runners and went for a walk to the end of the road and back. The camping area has really filled up today. We're so glad we arrived yesterday afternoon and got the spot we did.

It was another beautiful day as we packed up...going to be a great
travel day!After stopping at the
sani-dump, we said goodbye to Lac le Jeune and headed towards highway 5 south.

Hello to Merritt again...

We stopped at a rest stop on the Coquihalla Highway...as you can see, dark clouds have moved in...

Up we go into the clouds...

And then we hit rain at Hope...sheesh!!!

We stopped at Fraserway RV in Abbotsford to fill up with fresh water and then carried on the short distance to the Abbotsford Airport where we will be camping for the next 5 nights...the Air Show starts on Friday. This is the 50th Anniverary of the Abbotsford Air Show and with an attendance of 125,000 + people it is the largest on the west coast of North America and in Canada. We arrived a few minutes after 3pm (when the gates opened) and there was already a line up to get in...

Once through the gate, we were directed to a spot in the open grassy field to the left...the camping area is at the northend of the airport at the end of the 'taxi' ways. I'm glad we arrived early before the place gets packed...it allowed for easy access. They want people to unhook and park vehicles behind their rigs.

Steve is in his glory! As we were getting set up, a US Airforce plane arrived...

There were also F18's flying around practising...as well as the legendary Canadian Snowbirds.

It was after 5:00 by the time we were all set up...time to relax with a cocktail! Too bad we aren't able to camp by the main runway...would be able to watch the airshow from the "yard"..

Well, we had another pretty lazy day today.Actually, we have been pretty darned lazy our
whole stay here.Steve didn’t put the
boat in the water; nor did we explore any of the ATV trails around here.We didn’t even bring out our floating devices
and go onto the lake.Our
excuses...well...first of all we are quite a long way from the lake so Steve
would have to haul all his fishing paraphernalia up and down the hill—or drive
the truck...too much of a bother, besides the lake is pretty shallow and fishing
wasn't that good.We have already done
plenty of ATVing this summer in the heat and it was still too hot.Finally, with so many geese down at the beach
area leaving behind their droppings, we’re really not enticed to go and swim in
the lake...although throngs of others do.

Today we thought we might go for a bike ride around the lake...starting
at the opposite end from our hike the other day.But there were some pretty ugly looking
clouds hanging around...we would hate to be well into our ride and suddenly
have a downpour.So instead, we went for
a bike ride around the campground and also rode along the lakeside road that we
walked the other day. Steve took some pictures along the way...

This is a cottage with some unique wood carvings in the yard...

Once back, we basically just hung around here and read.As you can see, shade in the early afternoon
is at a premium (and non-existent in the morning)...

By late afternoon, it looked like the weather was going to co-operate
and allow us to have a campfire without having to dance around avoiding the
smoke...so we decided that we would roast hot dogs over the fire for dinner
tonight.So as the sun was getting lower
in the sky, Steve got a fire going.

There hadn’t been any wind whatsoever when we were preparing the fire
but of course, a strong breeze came along as Steve lit it.Luckily, though, it didn’t amount to much and
we were able to sit and enjoy the fire and roast our wieners.I have decided to eliminate wheat from my
diet, so I had to improvise a bun for my hot dog...yes, I wrapped it in lettuce
(with cheese, onion and ketchup)...it was good...just a little messy...

It was a lovely evening sitting out in front of the fire, watching the
hub-bub of other campers.The sky was
getting quite dark over the mountain on the other side of the lake and before
long, we started seeing flashes of lightning.We watched from our great vantage point as it got closer and closer...it
ended up being quite a show...but little thunder.At about 10:00, Steve put the fire out in
preparation to go inside and all of sudden the wind started up.The storm was upon us now with spectacular
flashes of lightning followed by thunder...and major wind!We stayed out for a bit longer but when the
rain started, we headed inside.It was
amazing how it was so calm one minute and all of a sudden the wind came up with
a vengeance!

Banff

About Us

We married in 1982 and our sons, Rob and Chris were born in 1983 and 1985. In 1990 we built our dream home in North Saanich just north of Victoria BC on 1.21 acres. We both had long careers, Dianne in Human Resources and Steve as Branch Manager for a controls systems wholesaler.
Steve always felt that there were no guarantees in life as far as health and mortality went, so we planned to retire early and RV full-time.
In late 2009 we began the build process on our custom Toy Hauler truck, taking delivery in early 2010. We moved into our new Montana 5th wheel in Feb 2010, living in it for 4 months while still working. In May 2010 we purchased 2 Yamaha Grizzly 550 ATVs. We're ready!
Just shy of our 55th birthdays, on June 25, 2010 we retired and started our life as gypsies.
We prefer dry camping (boondocking), getting as far away from civilization as possible. However, our size limits us from getting into all of those remote areas. Good thing we have the ATVs to explore with.